Friday, March 2, 2012

I am currently in the midst of preparing, confirming, and finalizing the questions and texts for my first comprehensive exam, tentatively set for August. The exam is on contemporary systematic theology, and I am focusing largely on developments after Barth.

My three loci are bibliology, ecclesiology, and theological anthropology. Readers' comments have proved quite helpful in the past in approaching certain projects or academic questions, so I thought I would extend an invitation to anyone who might have something to offer in this instance. With regard to the following sets of issues, what authors or texts would you recommend from the past fifty years as essential reading?

Bibliology: Scripture's normativity for theology; its role and authority in the life of the church; the proper Christian approach to its interpretation.

Ecclesiology: The relationship of the church to the wider society; that which constitutes the church's identity across time; the way in which the life of Jesus is normative for the life of the believer/believing community.

Theological anthropology: The concept of the imago dei; the nature of sin and its relation to God's purposes for human life; that in virtue of which human beings are constituted as creatures before God.

Many thanks in advance. Though I obviously won't be able to read everything, it will be deeply beneficial to cull from a large and representative group of works. Any and all suggestions are therefore most welcome.

A suggestion for bibliology: Delwin Brown's *Boundaries of Our Habitations*. (In case it isn't obvious, I'm trying to suggest texts that aren't standardly included on such lists, but which perhaps should be.)

And a very unusual suggestion for theological anthropology: Jim Wetzel's *Augustine and the Limits of Virtue*. Almost never included on lists of this sort, but Wetzel has profound insight into the issues you mention.

Mi Yodea?

Mi yodea? is the question the King of Nineveh asks in Jonah 3:9: "Who knows?" Jonah announces the impending destruction of Nineveh, but the King calls his people to repentance, resting his hope on the open possibility that God may be moved to mercy and forgiveness. And, as it happens, God is.

So that is the overarching question for us as we practice theology: Who knows? Who knows what God is doing, or what God has in store? The God revealed in Israel and in Jesus of Nazareth is a God of surprises, one who is doing a new thing. Such a God we will find at work in the most unlikely of places; may we, then, be fellow explorers and sojourners on the way.

About Me

I teach theology at Abilene Christian University. I'm interested in Scripture, theological interpretation, ecclesiology, the Trinity, and nonviolence. In an alternate universe I am a film critic while sidelining as an NBA analyst. Put those together, you've got this blog. Follow me on Twitter @eastbrad.